APA – Dar es Salam (Tanzania) – The project, supported by the United States will be aligned with the country’s national post-harvest management strategy.
Every year on 8 August, Tanzania celebrates Nane Nane Day (eight-eight in Swahili) in recognition of the important contribution made by farmers to the national economy. This year’s event was an opportunity
for the US government and the United Republic of Tanzania to announce USAID’s new food security activity Tuhifadhi Chakula (Save the Food in Swahili).
The $24 million initiative will be implemented by the Tanzania Horticulture Association in partnership with the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor Centre (SAGCOT) over a five-year period.
The project aims to increase food security by targeting and reducing food loss and waste. It will work to improve livelihoods, generate export opportunities for Tanzania, and help create jobs, particularly for women and young people.
According to the press release received by APA on Wednesday, 40-50 percent of crops in Tanzania are lost between the field and the final market. USAID’s Tuhifadhi Chakula project will work with farmers, traders, processors and other value chain actors to halve food loss and waste. It will be implemented initially in the regions of Arusha, Mbeya Morogoro, Njombe, Pwani, Tanga and Zanzibar.
“Today, we celebrate Tanzania’s significant progress in the agriculture, livestock and fisheries sectors,” said Craig Hart, USAID/Tanzania Mission Director, quoted in the note.
During his stay in Mbeya (South-West), Mr. Hart visited the sites of several ongoing USAID Feed the Future projects, the private sector strengthening activity and the activities of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa.
Recently, Dar es Salaam received renewed designation as a Feed the Future priority country. During her June visit to the country, USAID Administrator Samantha Power reaffirmed the strong partnership between the United States and Tanzania on food security and nutrition, poverty reduction and agricultural growth.
Craig Hart, the new USAID/Tanzania Mission Director, also expressed his appreciation for the long and fruitful relationship between his organization and the host country at a meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, Hussein Bashe, and at the Nane Nane event in Mbeya.
ARD/ac/fss/abj/APA